Frank Costa OAM (born 1938 in Geelong) is an entrepreneur, 1997 Order of Australia Medal recepient, and philanthropist. The Geelong native has been a prominent figure in the region for more than four decades, after inheriting the family's produce business in the late 1950s. The company has become largest service wholesaler of fruit & vegetables in the country with operations in five major states. The Order of Australia is an order of chivalry established by Queen Elizabeth II on February 14, 1975 for the purpose of according recognition to Australian citizens and other persons for achievement or for meritorious service. The Order includes three classes in general and military divisions, in descending order of... 1938 (MCMXXXVIII) was a common year starting on Saturday (link will take you to calendar). ... - - Nickname: City by the Bay Geography Area: 1,240 km² Coordinates: Time Zone UTC +10:00 Population (2003) 200,067 Among Australian cities: Density: persons/km² Political Mayor: Shane Dowling Governing body: City of Greater Geelong Geelong is a port city of 200,067 people (2003 census) located on Corio... To meet Wikipedias quality standards, this article or section may require cleanup. ... The Order of Australia is an order of chivalry for the purpose of according recognition to Australian citizens and other persons for achievement or for meritorious service. The Order was established on February 14, 1975, when Queen Elizabeth II signed Letters Patent instituting the Order. ... A philanthropist is someone who devotes his/her time, money, or effort towards helping others. ...

In 1998, he became president of the Geelong Cats football club. Geelong Football Club logo The Geelong Football Club is a football club in the Australian Football League (AFL). ...

History

Costa was the eldest of five sons born to Sicilian immigrants that moved to Australia in the 1880s. His great-uncle established the Geelong Covent Garden in 1888 — a produce grocery which he ran until the 1920s, at which time he turned it over to Costa's father. Sicilian (Lu Sicilianu, Lingua Siciliana) is the Romance language spoken in Sicily, Italy. ... Supermarket produce section A supermarket is a store that sells a wide variety of goods including food and alcohol, medicine, clothes, and other household products that are consumed regularly. ...

When Costa was 21, he (along with his brother Adrian) convinced his father to sell the business to them. Costa successfully grew the business with help from his brother, as they made forays into wholesaling. Although Adrian died in 1972 as a result of an automobile accident, and there were a few business blunders along the way — including the failed development of a state-of-the-art warehouse — the remaining Costa brothers were able to keep the business afloat. By the 1980s, the company had an annual turnover to the tune of AUD$100 million. Wholesaling consists of the sale of goods/merchandise to retailers, to industrial, commercial, institutional, or other professional business users or to other wholesalers and related subordinated services. ... This is a disambiguation page: a list of articles associated with the same title. ... Au. ...

As of 2006, the company has 800 employees, and a turnover in excess of 800 million. It's head office is an ex-church purchased by the Costa Group and converted into modern offices, located in Myers Street, Geelong.

Philanthropy

The Order of Australia which was bestowed upon Costa in 1997 is one of many occasions where his involvment in the community has been acknowledged. He was also awarded the Australian Sports Medal in 2001 for his instrumental role in Australian Rules football, which includes the restoration of the Geelong Cats to a position of prominence. Australian Rules and Aussie Rules redirect here. ...

According to a 2004 poll, Costa held first place on the list of the regions Movers and Shakers." It was also a year that saw him (out of frustration) publicly urge the authorities to keep its promise of developing a recycling and irrigation facility in the Werribee region.   The international symbol for recycling. ... High-altitude aerial view of irrigation in the Heart of the Sahara (, ) Irrigation (in agriculture) is the replacement or supplementation of rainfall with water from another source in order to grow crops. ... Werribee is a suburb in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. ...

Political scandals

His push for the recycling/irrigation plant is one of many events has caused some to raise conflict of interest concerns, as his company was apt to obtain a substantial benefit from the project. In addtion to being a Committee for Geelong board member and being president of the Geelong Football Club, Costa has been involved in some of the most prominent development projects being touted for the region. These include the development in North Geelong near the the Ford site and at Point Richards near Portarlington. A conflict of interest is a situation in which someone in a position of trust, such as a lawyer, a politician, or an executive or director of a corporation, has competing professional and/or personal interests. ... The Committee for Geelong is a non-political high profile lobby group active in the Australian city of Geelong. ... The majority of this article is about heads of states. ... Portarlington (Cúil an tSúdaire in Irish, meaning Tanners Corner) is a town in County Laois, straddling the border with County Offaly in the midlands of Ireland. ...

In early 2006, Costa was embroiled in controversy due to his undisclosed financial support of political campaigns.

External links

• Frank Costa profile from the Official Website of the Australian Football League
• Frank dominates the fruit game Transcript of story on Frank Costa, from abc.net.au
• Geelong's mini MCG
• Costa Group of Companies